I have been a teacher of the deaf, an organic farmer, a produce manager in a natural foods store and now, enjoy creating with clay.

 

In 1990, I met Richard Hess who introduced me to pottery and taught me hand building. After we married, we worked together in our studio, did craft shows around the northeast and then, had a teaching studio in Austin, Texas for ten years.

 

In 2014, we settled in Galena, Illinois, where Richard became a member of Twenty Dirty Hands and enjoyed being a part of the clay community. We started working in our own home studio, selling our work locally and participating annually in the Twenty Dirty Hands studio tour. Sadly, Richard passed away in 2023. I am grateful for all the years we had in our studio and for his creative spirit that he shared with me.

 

While my focus is on whimsical forms with a fascination with houses, I sometimes create more functional Raku pieces. My work is hand built using slabs or extruded clay. The surfaces are treated with Raku glazes and are removed red hot from the kiln and placed into a metal container of combustible materials. A lid is then immediately placed on the container to shut off or reduce the oxygen supply. This reduction process produces the varied and sometimes unpredictable finishes on my work.